At Whispering Hills where mortals and paranormals coexist peacefully – and romantically – love really does bite!
Talib Eldridge is a vampire who lives with guilt. 100 years ago, he accidentally turned a human to a vampire and has been afraid to get close to anyone for fear of ever losing control as he once did. When he meets Conley Berillo, his commitment to living in isolation is challenged. Immediately drawn to the human, he can’t help but fall in love.
Conley has always felt out of place. Never fitting in with others, he too has lived in isolation. When the existence of paranormal creatures is finally acknowledged, he feels an immediate affinity to the outcasts, still feared and hated by humans. Moving to Whispering Hills in Providence, Rhode Island, he knows immediately that he belongs to this new world. When he meets Talib, that conviction is only solidified.
When Jonah Townsend, the human Talib had turned about a hundred years earlier, re-enters the picture, Talib and Conley’s newfound happiness is threatened. Conley becomes the tool that Jonah uses to get back at Talib and Talib is forced to make a choice. Fight for his own happiness and risk Conley’s life, or put Conley’s safety first and sacrifice what he’s searched and struggled for over two hundred years!
Talib’s heart stopped, then assumed a frantic staccato beat. From the moment the green-eyed human set foot in the door, he’d captured Talib’s attention as if he had his own gravitational pull. So strong was Talib’s need to approach the man, he had no doubt this was the person Purvis wanted him to meet. With each step, warning bells sounded in his head. What am I doing? Like a runaway train on a collision course, Talib sensed impending doom and was powerless to stop the impending crash. This is how it happened before.
Events from nearly a hundred years earlier blended with the horrors from the night before.
Hadn’t he proven to himself time and again he was a killer? Despite his longing for companionship and the emptiness which threatened to consume him, history couldn’t be denied. With his self-control difficult to manage, placing temptation in his own path was pure stupidity. What was I thinking to accept Purvis’s invitation? This is sheer madness!
It wasn’t until the thoughts of the man reached him that Talib realized he’d actually stopped moving. Why isn’t he coming to me? Talib’s focus sharpened, and he became lost in a sea of emerald green, reason dashing out the window.
Keeping his feet firmly planted to the floor, Talib swallowed the venom dripping from his fangs. Lifting cars, bending minds to his will, these tasks were nothing compared to the sheer willpower it took him to avert his eyes. Keeping his gaze trained on Purvis’s lavender carpet, he forced himself to turn away and begin trudging toward the apartment door with leaden feet. He hadn’t made it more than five steps before another set of thoughts caught his attention. He glanced around the room but couldn’t locate the source.
He’s delicious. Talib heard the whisper in his mind then quickly located its origin: another vampire who’d locked his sights on the beautiful man. The predator who’d chosen his prey had the palest of skin and eyes a hypnotizing red. Thick blond hair cascaded over slender shoulders and framed a face with sharp, angular features. But more than the features, animalistic and primal, it was the thoughts which frightened Talib the most. Those eyes, that ass, the things I will do to him once I get him alone.
And then, as if a switch had been flipped, Talib’s vision shifted and he was seeing through the predator’s eyes. Through the unwanted connection with the other vampire he watched himself draw closer and closer toward the man he had just forced himself to abandon. Like water presented to someone stranded in the desert, Talib sensed the need driving the beast closer to the man with the green eyes. This wasn’t an approach of mere interest or attraction, it was something far too familiar to Talib…hunger. No, beyond hunger, an all-consuming thing he couldn’t name.
His retracted fangs grew violently elongated, venom drowning his mouth. A musky mix of adrenaline and pheromones permeated the air, drawing Talib like a beacon. The chemicals reacting in his bloodstream sent electrifying prickles along his skin as he worked to control the throbbing of his heart.
The thrill of a hunt, the conquest of a succulent meal and warm human blood echoed loudly in his head. Although no words had been spoken aloud, Talib examined his link to a vampire, experiencing the rush of another’s chase. As the predator drew closer to the man with the emerald green eyes, Talib’s paralysis snapped.
He recognized the threat immediately, but his breath caught as the next thought hit, not the predator’s this time. Thank God, he’s coming back. The innocence. The sheer, honest, vulnerability of this sweet man called him like a drug. A delectable, red-blooded, intoxicating drug.
Warmth chased away the chill as he took another step forward, and then his muscles clenched as the stalking vampire’s thoughts invaded his head once again. Every predatorial instinct kicked in at once. I’m gonna fuck that sweet ass. Whether the kid wants it or not, he’s mine tonight.
Talib surveyed the scene. Green Eyes focused on him and had no idea he was being stalked. Glancing toward the hunting vampire, Talib clenched his fists and lurched forward, placing his body between his rival and the innocent man.
Shoulders squared, Talib lifted his gaze to stare directly at the approaching hunter. With the control necessary to lift a parked truck, Talib forced himself to remain stationary, sending a single warning wordlessly through the air. No!
The predator slowed in his approach but didn’t stop, a combination of amusement and confusion settling on his face. Why?
Talib’s fists clenched involuntarily, his fangs barely contained within his mouth. The desire to pounce grew like a fire, threatening Talib’s tenuous hold on his anger. He is a man. Not food.
The sounds of the party faded into silence, Talib’s focus honing in on the vampire standing a few feet away. The confusion shifted to disgust as the stalker studied Talib, sizing him up. If you don’t want him, he’s mine.
Once again, the urge to leap nearly overtook Talib as he pictured his fangs ripping at this attacker’s throat. Green eyes, pure and alluring, flashed before Talib’s vision, easing his rage just enough to allow him to regain his composure. If he needed to, he would fight, but only as a last resort. With the seriousness of a warrior ready to back up a threat, Talib issued his warning one last time. No.
Time slowed. Confusion blasted Talib from behind, the thoughts of an unsuspecting man ringing clearly. Indecision lashed out from the vampire who faced him. Talib’s muscles quivered as the anticipation grew. Like a spring, he prepared to pounce.
A few moments elapsed, seconds that seemingly stretched into tortured minutes before the other vampire lowered his gaze and turned from Talib, abandoning the hunt.
Talib considered following. Likely he’d simply protected one human only to set this vampire’s sights on another. Before he could act, his thoughts were interrupted. I guess he doesn’t want me.
It was an invitation to leave. Green Eyes suspected Talib wasn’t interested. He shouldn’t be. The smart thing to do would be to walk away. But maybe that vampire will return if I leave. Deep down he knew he clutched at straws for an excuse, but desire outweighed his better judgment.
